Located in southern Mexico,
northern Central America
 Olmec influences

 Ball courts, planned
ceremonial centers
 Religious beliefs
(i.e., jaguar spirit)

“Empire” comprised of
loosely organized city-states
 Each was independent, ruled
by a god-king
 Examples: Tikal, Chichen Itza
Mayan Ball:
-Ritualistic and sometimes solemn
-Players could not use their hands
-Once the ball went through the
hoop, or touched the ground,
game was over
-Victors = heroes
-Losers = sometimes killed
Similarities to Sports Today:
-People often gambled on games
-Required teamwork
-No hands = soccer
-Use of a hoop
-Large structures built just for games
-Large crowds attending games
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Most advanced writing system
in ancient Americas
 800 glyphs
 Used for record keeping,
history of civilization
Popol Vuh – creation story
City states linked by
trade routes and alliances
 Products: salt, feathers,
shells, honey, textiles
 Cacao beans sometimes
served as currency
What
observations/
assumptions
can you make
about the
Maya from
the map?

As civilization grew, more wealth and
development of social classes
 King at top (hereditary position)
 Noble class: warriors, priests
 Merchants, artisans
 Peasant farmers (majority of
population)
 Religion was complex, polytheistic
 Believed each day was a living god,
behavior was predicted by a system of
calendars
 Practiced human sacrifice, usually
enemies
▪ Believed that it pleased the gods
and kept world in balance
Late 800s – many cities
suddenly abandoned
 Toltec peoples moved into
area
 Theories:
 Increased warfare between
city-states disrupted trade
 Overpopulation, overfarming caused famine,
disease

Prior to Aztec: Toltec ruled over
central Mexico beginning around
900, lasted until about 1150.
 Aztec displaced the Toltec, but
retained some aspects of the
culture
- Strong focus on military,
practice of sacrifice to gods
 Worshiped of many gods,
including Quetzalcoatl,
the Feathered Serpent
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Built up civilization on and around Lake
Texcoco, city of Tenochtitlan
Formed Triple Alliance with other citystates, Texcoco and Tlacopan
 Core of Aztec civilization
 38 provinces (up to 15 million people)
loosely controlled through strong military
and tributes
 Emperor help political power in capital,
but depended on loyalty/tribute of
provincial governors
Aztec society originally
revolved
around the calpulli – clans
that
served as a way to distribute
goods, land, military units.
- became more hierarchical
as society grew
Emperor
(divine status)
Nobles – religious
& military leaders
Commoners – merchants,
artisans, soldiers, farmers
Enslaved persons – captives who
did various jobs, also used as tribute
Religion played a major role in daily life
• Hundreds of temples and religious structures
= evidence
• Polytheistic - 1,000s of gods
– Many adopted from other Mesoamerican
peoples
– Quetzalcoatl – god of learning, god of wind,
symbol of death and rebirth
• Depicted as both feathered serpent and
pale-skinned man with beard
• Practiced human sacrifice to please the gods
– Thousands a year sacrificed to Huitzilopochtli
– Enslaved persons, criminals, prisoners of war
•
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Agriculture-based society
Tribute requirement
 Emperor demanded vast
quantities of tribute from
neighboring provinces
▪ Government collected tribute
(resources like food) and
redistributed as it saw fit
Trade important
 Helped create alliances, as well
as obtain needed resources
 Pochteca - special merchant
class, controlled long-distance
trade
1502 – Montezuma II crowned
emperor
 Demanded even more tribute and
sacrifice from provinces
 Many provinces rebelled, threw
civilization into chaos
 Return of Quetzalcoatl!
 Spanish conquistadors arrived
early 16th century
▪ Many saw the Spanish as gods
and gave very little resistance
▪ Brought superior weapons and
disease
▪ Easily overthrow civilization

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Built upon foundations of
older civilizations
 Chavin, Moche, Nazca,
Chimor

As Inca spread through
Andes Mountains
highlands, began to
incorporate other groups
 Created empire through
acquisition of land and
resources

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Centralized bureaucracy oversaw
entire empire
 Called Twantinsuyu - “The Four
Regions”
 Encompassed 80 provinces,
between 9-13 million people
 Divine emperor at the top
Extensive road system helped
establish control over provinces
• Tambos – way stations that
served as inns, storehouses, and
supply centers for Inca armies
One official language – Quechua –
made communication between
different social/ethnic groups easier

Economy strictly controlled
by government
 Regulated production and
distribution of goods

Demanded tribute from
provinces
 Mita: labor required by all able-
bodied citizens

Technology played an
economic role
 Quipu: system of strings and
knots used to keep track of
numerical information

Focused worship mostly on nature
spirits (polytheistic/animistic)
 Moon, stars, thunder, sun gods
 Mamakuna – unmarried women
selected for a lifetime of religious
service
 Yamacuna – men who served as fulltime religious workers
▪ Made sacrifices (animals) and distributed
goods as gifts from gods

Huayna Capac – Inca leader during early
1500s
 Died of disease (probably small pox) when
travelling around Ecuador
 After death – empire split in two, ruled by two
sons
▪ Civil war weakened empire

1530s – Spanish arrived to overtake a very
weak empire
 Disease probably did more to weaken Inca